Hamilton wins Chinese Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton completed a hat-trick of wins by leading a dominant Mercedes one-two in the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix. Photo by: Carlos Barria/Reuters

Shanghai - Lewis Hamilton completed a hat-trick of wins by leading a dominant Mercedes one-two in the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday.

German team mate Nico Rosberg took the chequered flag 18 seconds behind the Briton to finish runner-up for the third race in a row but retaining the overall lead in the championship, four points ahead of Hamilton.

“I just can't believe how amazing the car is,” said Hamilton, who led from pole and punched the air with both fists after parking up and leaping out. “I was just really racing myself.

“This team is on a roll, that's for sure.”

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, last year's winner in Shanghai, finished third - his first podium of the year - in his team's first race under new principal Marco Mattiacci and ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo.

The victory was the 25th of Hamilton's career, pulling him level with Niki Lauda and the late Jim Clark in the all-time list of winners, and the first time the 2008 champion had won three races in a row.

Rosberg, the winner of the season-opener in Australia, now has 79 points after four races, with Hamilton on 75 and Alonso third on 41.

Mercedes have 154 points to Red Bull's 57.

MOVE OVER, VETTEL

Red Bull's four times world champion Sebastian Vettel, who was asked to move aside for his faster Australian team-mate for the second race in a row, was fifth.

Germany's Nico Hulkenberg was sixth for Force India, with Valtteri Bottas seventh for Williams despite making contact with Rosberg at the start.

His Brazilian team mate Felipe Massa had a nightmare, however, stuck in the pits for a minute as Williams struggled to change a rear left tyre.